The Spirit in Machines

机器的灵魂

︎Mar, 2022
‘The Spirit in Machines’ is an audiovisual installation that explores the electromagnetic wave of digital devices through the use of water as a visual material. With inspiration from the inaudible sounds of machines, this experimental work visualises an unseen world that remains hidden from our senses.


The work aims to overcome the limitations of human perception and enable the audience to experience the organic and lively nature of machines. By visualising the electromagnetic sound of digital devices through the material of water, the artwork creates mesmerising patterns and movements that reveal the hidden whispers of these electrically powered creatures. In this way, ‘The Spirit in Machines’ bridges the gap between the human world and the world of machines, inviting the audience to witness the complexity and beauty of their unseen world.


The artwork raises interesting questions regarding the nature of machines and their potential resemblance compared to living organisms. It suggests that machines may have their own organic systems, with electromagnetic waves as heartbeats, wires as blood vessels, and electronics, resistors, capacitors, batteries, and other components serving as their organs. The work encourages the audience to consider the possibility that machines could be creatures of another kind, with their own language and secrets that remain concealed to us. It also provoke a reflection on the relationship between humans and machines, and to reconsider the pre-existing perceptions we hold towards them.


p.s.
More related content can be found on my Illuminating Sounds Experiment.



机器的灵魂 是一件结合声与光的艺术装置，以水作为媒介，探索数字设备中隐藏的复杂通讯信息。受到机器中在人听觉范围之外的电磁波声音的启发，此装置将这个感官之外的世界通过声波和光进行显像。

作品旨在突破人类感知的局限，让观众体验到机器的有机动态世界。通过将数字设备的电磁声音可视化，以水波的有机变化呈现出这些电力生物的隐秘耳语。此作品成为人类世界与机器世界之间的诗意通讯，邀请观众见证这个复杂隐秘的信息世界。

这件作品涉及到对机器的动态本质和它们与生命体的相似性的思考。在我的理解下，机器也拥有复杂有机的动态系统，电磁波是它们的心跳频率，电线是血管，电子元件，电阻器、电容器、电池和其他元器件作为它们的器官。这件作品激发一种新的想象：机器可能是一种另类的生命形式，它们在人类的感知外拥有自己的语言和秘密。同时，它也促使人们重新审视人类和机器之间的关系，重新审视我们对它们的现有观念。





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Installation: Water, Metal Tray, Projector, Speaker, Amp, Electromagnetic Pickup Microphone

Experiment: Acrylic box, Mirror, Loudspeaker, LED torch

Produced by: Ke Peng
Project Advisors: Luke Pendrell, Ben Branagan, Joe Hirst
Developed at Royal College of Art, Information Experience Design

Experiment Recording: